Furniture is best sold offline

Online is a great revenue generator. But offline is even better, feel start-ups in the business of furniture.  Pegged at $32 billion, the home and furniture market in India, while holding tremendous potential in the online space, is equally aggressive in the brick-n-mortar world, growing at 10-15% year on year.

But being highly fragmented with multiple big and small players in the fray, the need to reach out to consumers with a touch-and-feel experience seems imperative. Physical stores are seen as a sound marketing tool and a key touch point for consumer engagement.

“Furniture is still 85% sold through the unorganised sector due to the ease of availability and reach,” says Alok Duggal, COO of Homestudio.com.

“The online store gives customers options galore to choose from, while the offline ones give them a chance to touch-and-feel the products before buying. Since the market lacks trust factor, which I feel will only come in another five to ten years, these hybrid models will be  a good way to fill in the gap. Although, having an offline set-up comes with its own challenges such as high real estate prices,” says Duggal.

According to Ashish Shah, founder and COO, Pepperfry, omni-channel has been a key focus for the company in the last three years and has contributed immensely towards improving the customer experience. “We executed our omni-channel strategy by launching our first experience centre called Studio Pepperfry in December 2014. The Studios showcase a curated range of furniture from our online portfolio and where customers can experience design, and various types of furniture with different wood finishes. The Studios also have interior design consultants who assist in browsing through the entire range,” says Shah.  

The experts say online buys are mostly repeat buys from existing customers. But offline often accelerates buying due to its ability to provide a better experience, along with relevant information and assistance from design experts.

According to Shah, the Studios (physical stores) are converting four of ten visits into online sales.

“For now and for the next few years, it will be about having the right mix of online and offline to reach out to more people,” says Duggal.

The furniture start-ups are geared up towards scaling their offline stores. Pepperfry recently rolled out a franchise model to build a very large omni-channel network in the country and extend it to smaller towns, says Shah.

Pepperfry presently has 23 offline stores across key Indian metroes. “We are geared up to launch 48 Studios in 15 cities by March 2018, based on an owned and franchisee model,” says Shah.

Meanwhile, Homestudio has just started leveraging the offline opportunity by entering places such as Bengaluru, Mohali, Dehradun and Kochi. “We have three stores and are about to open fourth in Pune. We are planning five more in the next few years. The idea  is to open one store to serve one large area or state,” says Duggal.  

TOUCH AND FEEL

• Studios (physical stores) are converting four of ten visits into online sales, according to Pepperfry
   
• For now and for the next few years, it will be about having the right mix of online and offline, say experts
   
• Pepperfry has 23 offline stores across metroes